Lessons
by Aleh
Summary: A powerful entity takes an interest in Keiichi... but why?
1. Episode 1

*Lessons, Episode 1*  
  
  
Around five o'clock PM (8 AM Greenwich mean time) one sunny afternoon, I walked  
into the yard of a temple just outside Nekomi. Yes, I walked. Frankly, I didn't want  
to draw much attention... yet. A young man was sweeping the path to the temple.   
"Hello, Keiichi," I said in Japanese.  
"Do I know you?" said Keiichi.  
"No."  
"How do you know my name, then?"  
"Just because you don't know me doesn't mean that I don't know you. I'm here to see  
Belldandy."  
"What do you mean? Oh, never mind. I'll go get her."  
He turned around, and started to walk towards the temple. "Wait," I said.  
"Yes?"  
"Don't worry about hiding her... umm... true nature. I already know."  
It's too bad I don't have a photograph of his face at that moment. He was really  
startled.  
You see, Belldandy was his girlfriend... and a goddess. In any event, he recovered nicely  
and headed in to get her. Yes, they were living together in a temple. Well, actually, he  
was living in a temple with three goddesses. Hey, if that's not proof of some degree of  
potential, I don't know what is... well, short of Tenchi syndrome or Moroboshi  
syndrome.  
Well, as I was thinking that, Belldandy stepped out. "Yes?" she said in her lovely  
voice, then stopped in shock s she saw me. Keiichi (who was right behind her) said,  
"You know him,  
Bell-chan?"  
This snapped Belldandy out of her momentary paralysis as she turned towards  
Keiichi and said, "Not personally, no." Turning to me, she continued, "It's a great honor,  
sir. What brings you here?" Keiichi was in shock (Even more than usual). I suppose  
hearing a deity call someone you don't know "sir" might do that. After all, the only other  
being he'd ever heard her address like that was Kami-sama (God, to those of you who  
are totally clueless).  
I chuckled, partly at the expression on Keiichi's face (It's amazing. Just when you  
think he can't go any further into shock...), and partly at Belldandy's unnecessary  
formality. I, of course, recovered nicely and responded, "You really don't have to be so  
formal, and you *know* why I'm here." Belldandy responded with one word, "Who?"  
At this point, Keiichi was really confused (What else was new?) and proceeded to  
ask  
Belldandy who I was. She, of course, was at a loss to explain. I, seeing a little problem,  
interjected, "It might be simpler to ask *what* I am, not who."  
Turning to me, he asked, "Are... you a god?"  
"Nope."  
"Hmm... you can't be a demon or a human, though..."  
"Nope. Something else, entirely."  
"You couldn't be an alien, though. You're too humanoid."  
I chuckled. "You'd be surprised, but nope, I'm not an alien... exactly."  
Keiichi was puzzled. "What else could you be?"  
I anticipated this (of course), as well as the direction the conversation took. That was  
one reason why I chose the time I did to stop by. I continued, "Well... Tamiya, Ootaki  
and Megumi should be here any moment now, so I'll be going. I'll explain later." As I  
'blinked' out, Belldandy heard a disembodied voice in her ear say, "Him."  
  



	2. Episode 2

*Episode 2*  
  
Tamiya, Ootaki, and what appeared to be half of NIT's campus's population were  
having a little party. Well, little isn't exactly the word. Anywhere less remote, their  
"little" party would have caused trouble with noise ordinances. Morisato Keiichi and  
Belldandy, however, were somewhat distracted. Skuld was in her room, trying to work  
on yet another attachment for Banpei-Kun RX, and Urd was trying to get Keiichi drunk  
(In hopes that he would seduce her sister). All in all, it was a typical "party night" at  
Keiichi's. Seeing as Belldandy seemed to have something on her mind (Keiichi's trying  
not to participate is the norm, but Belldandy's usually cooking something for them), they  
dragged a *slightly* edited version of my little... visit out of Keiichi, minus the bits  
about both how I left and Belldandy's being a goddess. This, obviously, became a bit of  
a discussion for the group--Belldandy doesn't normally react like that to strangers, and a  
foreigner who knows both her and Keiichi is a prime subject for gossip, especially when  
nobody has any idea who he is! Seeing an opportunity, I walked to the door, and  
stepped halfway in.  
"Are you 'im?" said Tamiya.  
"Yes, I'm the one who stopped by earlier." I said.  
"Uh-oh," thought Keiichi.  
"Why are you here?" said Megumi.  
"Actually, I just wanted to tell Morisato-san here that he has potential. Quite a bit of  
it."  
Everyone except Belldandy was quite confused. Closing the door behind me before  
anyone could continue, I stepped out and 'blinked'.  
The, quite predictable, result was mass confusion as everyone simultaneously  
stampeded out and searched for me, looking under every rock (And in Tamiya's case,  
that meant literally).  
The next morning, at breakfast, Urd (predictably) had a hangover. Belldandy was  
*almost* her usual self (The news I gave her shook her up a bit), Skuld was... well,  
Skuld (How else would I describe a perky little physically-14-year-old goddess with a  
hammer that she uses to "debug" the universe?). Keiichi was eating (Belldandy's as good  
at cooking as I am, although a bit slower at it), and really enjoying himself. I found it to  
be an ideal opportunity, and 'blinked' in while Belldandy was in the kitchen.  
"Who are you... unghh," said Urd, groaning in pain.  
"Let me take care of that." I said, and held up a hand. Urd sighed in relief.  
"Answer the question, and how did you DO that?"  
"Well, maybe I should show you..." I said, my eyes (pupils, iris, and all) turning white  
and starting to glow.  
"Oh... my... god...."  
At this point, I just smiled. Keiichi had actually stopped eating midbite as he stared.  
"W...wh... who is he?" he stammered.  
Skuld chimed in with, "Yeah, Urd, who?" just as Belldandy walked in, and dropped  
the food. I reacted quickly and caught it telekenetically. "Be a bit more careful. I'd hate  
to see such a nice meal go to waste."  
"Arigatou," said Belldandy, as polite as always (even in shock).  
"No problem," I said, switching to English.  
"What did he just say?" said Keiichi (who didn't understand).  
"I said, Keiichi that it wasn't a problem. Although your not understanding English is  
one," I said (in Japanese again), "Fortunately, it's one I'm going to remedy."  
"WHAT?" said Keiichi, his eyes bulging out.  
"I said I'm going to remedy the problem," I said holding out my hand and switched  
back to English, "There. Problem solved."  
"H... HOW?"  
"I simply transferred a portion of my knowledge to your brain. Nothing fancy," I  
replied.  
"You call that 'nothing fancy'?!?" Keiichi replied (In English, I was gratified to see).  
"Umm... Keiichi, to *him*, that really wasn't much," said Urd.  
"YOU know who he is, too, sis?" said Skuld.  
"Of course. You don't?" replied Urd.  
"No. Who is he?"  
"Umm... Skuld, let me put it this way: he's a bit *central* to things..."  
"Kami-sama?!?"  
"No, Skuld..." said an exasperated Urd (She had dropped an awfully big hint, after  
all...).  
"Then who?"  
"That's simple, Skuld," I chimed in, "I'm," a string of syllables which the human vocal  
chords were *definitely* never intended to produce followed. Skuld's eyes widened.  
"No...," she said in disbelief.  
"Umm... excuse me...." said Keiichi, "Who IS he, anyway?"  
"Who?" Skuld asked me, getting over her shock.  
"Him." I said simply, in Nordic so Keiichi wouldn't understand.  
"Umm... Skuld? Urd? Belldandy? Everybody seems to know who this guy is except  
me." Keiichi added.  
"Keiichi," I said, "there are some things mortals were not meant to know. Who I am  
comes pretty close to one of them."  
"Oh, that's a comfort." Keiichi said sarcastically.  
"Look, that's not what I mean, but as I said, it's not something I should be telling  
mortals. That's not to say I won't tell you, just that I won't tell a mortal."  
"Wait a moment. If you won't tell a mortal, and I'm a mortal, then you WON'T tell  
me. So how do you figure you will?"  
"The answer's to that's simple, although it will require a bit of explanation."  
"I have time."  
"Ok. It's two-fold, actually. Remember your wish? To have Belldandy with you  
forever? Well, you're mortal, and she's not. When you die, she won't be with you  
anymore unless she dies as well. Problem with that is, she CAN'T die. Given that you  
will, we've got a bit of a paradox. There're only two ways to solve it. You should be able  
to guess what they are."  
"I never thought of that.... you mean, either Belldandy has to become a norma-"  
I interrupted at this point, "A mortal. She'll never be 'normal', no matter what."  
"Err... a mortal... or I..."  
I interrupted again, "Have to become IMmortal. And neither I nor Kami-kun like the  
former option."  
"Kami-KUN?!?!"  
"Yes. That's besides the point, though. The problem with the latter, however, is that  
to be immortal, you'd have to be a god..."  
"Me?!?"  
"Yes, but as much as Belldandy might like that option, I don't."  
"Why not?" asked Urd.  
"Well, Urd, it's an awfully big waste of potential."  
"WHAT?!?!" exclaimed Keiichi, "What else is there?!?"  
"I'm sorry, Keiichi, you're not ready to hear that part now. And THAT's why I'm  
here. I'm going to make *DAMNED* sure you *get* ready."  
"Huh?" asked Keiichi, a bit calmer.  
"Keiichi, I don't like to interfere with mortal affairs. I have hundreds of things to  
teach you, and, to be frank, I also had a *lot* of ways to teach them to you *far* more  
indirectly than what I'm doing. I'm talking to you now, up-front, because I think that I  
owe you as much of an explanation as I can give, even if it costs me my best options.  
That being said, I'd better be going..."  
"Wait. One last thing..."  
"Fine. One question. I'll answer truthfully, but I may have to refuse to answer."  
"Why did you call Kami-sama 'Kami-kun'?"  
"And that is another of those things that mortals were not meant to know," I said and  
'blinked' out.  



	3. Episode 3

*Episode 3*  
  
Now that my carefully formulated plans were in motion, I could not tolerate  
interference. I didn't have to worry about Kami; he knew better than to do anything that  
might disrupt one of my plans. His opposition, however, was another matter.  
Accordingly, I kept track of Mara. When she did finally show up around the temple, I  
'blinked' in.  
"Who the HELL are you?!?" she said (hovering fifty feet in the air).  
I responded by turning my eyes white and glowing again. "Neat trick. Now, who are  
you?" she said.  
"Someone who wants to talk to your superiors."  
"That's a new one. Try someone who cares."  
"Mara, demoness first class, I WILL speak to your superiors."  
"Who the HELL are you to make demands of ME?"  
"I am who I am. And I will not tolerate interference in my plans," I said and returned  
my eyes to their usual brown.  
"Oh? And what are these 'plans' of yours?"  
"They're for me to know. Now, will we go see your superiors or will I have to drag  
you to Hell myself?"  
"Just try it!"  
"Ok, you asked for it," I said. Next thing she knew, we were standing in Hell. Or,  
more accurately, SHE was standing in Hell. I was still flying. "Now, let's go see your  
superiors, shall we? Or would you rather if I just left you here for a bit? I assume you  
DO recognize exactly where we are..."  
"Oh, like I can't just leave," she said, obviously trying to do just that, "WHAT THE  
HELL?!? Why can't I teleport out?"  
"I blocked your power. Now take a closer look. You've obviously figured out that  
we're in Hell, but pay attention to exactly where in Hell we are."  
She looked around a moment. "Oh, SHIT!" she exclaimed when she finally  
understood.  
"Exactly. Now, I can leave you here until Cthulhu gets back (and when he does he'll  
be really hungry), or we can go talk to your superiors. Oh, and when I return your  
powers, don't bother trying to run."  
"Fine. I'll take you to see them, but if you could do all of this, why didn't you just go  
see them yourself? I mean, if you can break into Cthulhu's lair this easily, couldn't you  
just go teleport in?"  
"Sure, I could, but I knew what your reaction would be. Not even Kami could get in  
here without major difficulty, yet I just did. And if I were a demon, I wouldn't need  
much of an introduction, would I?"  
"Exactly."  
"Well, I'm *not* a demon, and I wanted to see *your* superiors. And to do it with a  
minimum of force. Cthulhu invited me to use his lair for this purpose whenever I wanted  
a few aeons ago, and I figured it was about time to take him up on his offer."  
"CTHULHU offered you... You mean you've MET him!?! And he didn't eat you?!?"  
"Yes, yes, and obviously not."  
The expression on Mara's face was classic. "Who are you?" she said in a defeated  
tone.  
"I'm," I said and followed it with my name (Which is quite impossible for mortals to  
say, I assure you). Mara gasped in shock. "Now, can we *please* go see your  
superiors?"  
"Of course, sir..." she said, and I restored her powers.  
To make a long story short, we soon found ourselves in another part of Hell.  
"First-class demoness Mara here to see the Council," she said to an imp.  
"Annnnnndddddd youuuuuurrrrrrr  
cccccooooommmmmppppaaaannnniiooonnnn?????" replied the imp.  
"Just introduce me. I'll take care of the rest. Tell them it's important that I see them  
immediately."  
The imp wandered off and returned about a minute later. "Ttthhhheee  
ccccooouuuunnnnccciiillll ssssaaaayyysss ttttthhhhhaaaaattttt ttttthhhhiiiisss  
hhhaaaaaaaaddddd bbbbbeeeettttteeerrrr bbbbbeeeee gggooooooooodddddd.", it said.  
"Oh, it is," Mara replied, "But not in the way they're probably thinking."  
"Fffffooooolllllllllllloooooooowwwwww mmmmmmmeeeeeeeee," the imp droned,  
and led us down a path. A few seconds later, we found ourselves face to face with the  
Council.  
"First class demoness Mara, why are you here? And what makes this so urgent that  
you would interrupt our deliberations?" asked a particularly disgusting-looking devil.  
"Actually, he asked to see you," she said.  
"You took a MORTAL here? And interrupted us for nothing more?!? We should  
feed you to Cthulhu!" exclaimed another.  
"No, I did not. He's no mortal."  
"Oh? Then who issssss he?" asked a large snake. I simply turned my eyes  
white-and-glowing again. There was a gasp around the room. "What brings you here, of  
all places? Don't tell us-" said one really hideous demon, stopping when I interrupted.  
"No, I'm not here for any of you. I'm here to tell you to stay away from Nekomi for a  
while. I will not tolerate interference in my plans."  
"Of course, sir." said some pus-covered suck-up.  
"Oh, by the way, tell Old Horny I stopped by."  
"WHO?!?"  
"Satan, of course. Feel free to tell him I called him that, if you'd like. And don't worry  
about him getting angry about it. I warned him once that if he tried to get revenge on  
one of my messengers for anything they did in that capacity, I'd let him spend the rest of  
Eternity as a guppy."  
The crowd stared in shock. A guppy is a particularly harmless fish, and about an inch  
in size.  
"Well, that being taken care of, I should be going." I said, and 'blinked' out.  



	4. Episode 4

*Episode 4*  
  
That being done, it was time to start teaching Keiichi. I had already eliminated my  
best courses of action, but the approach I was taking had the two advantages of being  
more honest (this was the most indirect way that allowed me to tell Keiichi what I was  
doing, or at least as much of it as I had), and being a *lot* more fun. I quickly thought  
up a suitable avatar for my purposes; my true form is obviously a Gaijin, and I wanted to  
avoid drawing attention. "My" "new" "form" was about 5'7" and of moderate build.  
Other than that, I went with as close to my usual self as I could (physically) while not  
being recognizable AS me and appearing to be Japanese. I mentally accessed Nekomi  
Tech's computer records and added a "new" file, for an exchange student (of  
Japanese descent) named "Seimeino Koujiku". Hey, I both wanted to drop a  
not-so-subtle hint for Keiichi and have a little joke. I figured it would take him a while to  
figure it out, anyway, as he was going to be pretty "confused" about the whole situation.  
Then, I 'blinked' in my little iryokunokengen when no one was looking and walked to  
the main office of Nekomi Tech.  
Around half an hour later, Keiichi was called down to see his Dean (I had enrolled in  
the same program as him, and matched "my" courses to share as many as possible with  
him without seeming suspicious or blowing Koujiku's cover).  
"Konnichiwa, Keiichi-san," said the dean.  
"Konnichiwa," responded Keiichi.  
"Keiichi, you are probably wondering why I've called you down here."  
"Yes, Sensei."  
"We have a new exchange student from America. Unfortunately, his Japanese isn't all  
that great. Seeing as you've been doing quite well in your English classes lately, and that  
he shares several of your classes, I was hoping you could show him around, and help  
him get used to life here."  
"Of course, Sensei," replied Keiichi.  
"Well, then, that being taken care of, I'd like you to meet Seimeino Koujiku."  
The name startled Keiichi. "Didn't you say he was from America?" he said.  
"Yes, but his parents were Japanese."  
"Shouldn't he speak Japanese, then?"  
"His parents moved to America before he was born, and died in a car crash shortly  
afterwards. He was raised in an orphanage. Fortunately for him, his parents left him a  
substantial amount of stock, and he's now quite wealthy. He says that he's always  
intended to spend some time here, to 'get back to his roots,' and finally got the chance."  
"Oh. He sounds interesting."  
The dean chuckled. "Yes, that he is. He's staying just off-campus. He actually bought  
a house, if you can believe it. Something about 'being sick and tired of being stuck in a  
dormitory or barracks of some kind of another.'"  
"Wow."  
"Anyway, " the dean said as he pressed a button on his desk, "Send him in."  
My iryokunokengen opened the door and walked in. "Hi," I said (with only a very  
slight Japanese accent).  
"Hello. Seimeino Koujiku, I presume," Keiichi said in perfect English (And now you  
see the payoff of my teaching him to speak English. *chuckle*).  
"Seimeino-san, Morisato-san, I believe you have a class in ten minutes. You'd better  
get going if you want to be on time," said the Dean, dismissing us.  
"Yes, sir." I said.  
"Hai, sensei!" said Keiichi.  
A few hours later (and after two classes), we were discussing my past.  
"I heard you lost your parents when you were very young," Keiichi said regretfully.  
"Well, yes."  
"It must have been hard on you."  
"Trust me, you never want to be stuck in a room with three roommates, any one of  
which could easily kill you, and at least two of which have almost no concern for your  
safety."  
"I know," he groaned sympathetically.  
"Heh. I'll have to meet your roommates," I said.  
"I'm not sure that would be such a good idea...," he said.  
"Well, I can wait," I said.  
"Anyway, what clubs are you thinking of joining," he responded (trying to change the  
subject away from the Goddesses).  
"I'm not all that sure. Honestly, I have only three hobbies that could fit the bill," I  
said.  
"Oh? What are they?  
"Well, cooking for one."  
"Okay, scratch that, but you really should meet Bell-chan. Maybe you could swap  
recipes. She's a really good cook."  
"Secondly, Norse mythology."  
"Oh? We don't have a club for that, but I'd love to hear how you got involved in  
something that odd."  
"Odd? I never thought of it that way. I'm not really sure just *how* I got interested  
in it. It's just always appealed to me."  
"Hmm. Interesting. And what was the third?"  
"Heh. I build cars."  
"Oh? What about the motor club, then? I'm a member."  
"Oh, I don't know. I've heard some... interesting things about the club's leaders.  
Something about some guy named 'Tamiya' breaking the ribs of every other new  
member."  
Keiichi laughed. "It's not *THAT* bad," he said, barely able to stand up straight.  
"Okay, if you say so, but I'm warning you... any hospital bills come out of my club  
fees."  
Keiichi chuckled again. "Oh, I don't think that'll be a problem," he said. My plan was  
falling into place nicely.  



	5. Episode 5

*Episode 5*  
  
The next day, Keiichi introduced 'Koujiku' to Tamiya and Ootaki, only having to do  
a little translation for "him". I had insisted on waiting until the meeting the next day, to  
Keiichi's confusion (although he *did* understand when we went), and avoided the  
"Tamiya treatment" by wearing a spiked-leather jacket (Tamiya still DID try, though). I  
was quickly assigned to work on a motorbike for an upcoming race. Something about  
fuel-efficiency (The racers got a finite amount of gas, and were graded both on speed  
and on just how much they used. Winners were selected from both categories, with an  
additional "overall" winner). Obviously, Keiichi was driving. After the meeting, we  
stopped and chatted.  
"So *THAT'S* why you insisted on waiting!" Keiichi exclaimed, laughing.  
"Yeah. I picked it up in America in a garage sale."  
"Do you know where to get the parts for that bike?"  
"Yeah. I have most of what I'd need lying around my house. Why do you use that  
dump for your meetings, anyway?"  
"Well, we're a bit low on funds, so it's the best we can afford."  
"Heh. Why don't we use my place in the future? It's close by, and a *lot* nicer."  
"Sounds great. I'll have to run it by Tamiya and Ootaki, though."  
"Of course. Why wasn't Belldandy at the meeting?"  
"She went to get some groceries for the temple. We're running low on food,  
especially ice cream. Why? Do you want to meet her?"  
"Sure. I've heard a lot about her and her sisters."  
Twenty minutes later, we were at the temple. Keiichi told me to wait up front and  
got the three sisters. While I was outside, he warned them about my "hobby" with  
mythology and to be careful not to reveal anything that would make me realize what  
they truly were (A totally useless effort. I had intended for 'Koujiku' to figure it out  
from the beginning).  
"Okay, come on in," he said.  
"Konnichiwa, Koujiku-san," Belldandy said.  
"Konnichi.... Oh, my god...." 'Koujiku' said in apparent shock as he saw the sisters'  
forehead emblems.  
"What is it, Koujiku-kun?" Keiichi asked.  
"The runes on their foreheads. They're the Norns' runes!"  
"Huh?" said Keiichi, confused. The goddesses looked at each-other, not knowing  
what to do.  
"Urd has the rune of the past and of destiny on her forehead. Belldandy's is the rune  
of being and of the present. Skuld's is the rune of necessity and of the future."  
"What?"  
"Don't tell me you don't know!" 'Koujiku' exclaimed.  
"Know what?"  
"Well, I really can understand why you'd want to keep it a secret," I said.  
"Keep what a secret?"  
"That you're living with the Norns, of course!"  
Keiichi stared in shock.  
"Well, I can understand why no one's figured it out so far. Norse runes are pretty  
obscure. You'll have to tell me the real story behind how you met, though."  
To make (another) long story short, Keiichi told me, with occasional interjections  
from the three sisters.  
"Whoa," I said when he finished, "What are the odds of *that* happening?"  
"I really don't want to know," said Keiichi, "but I'm glad it did."  
"Yeah. You and Belldandy really are in love."  
"Yes, I suppose we are," Keiichi said.  
"There's no 'supposing' about it. You are."  
"That's very perceptive of you, Koujiku," said Urd, "but if you don't mind, I'd like to  
make sure you aren't another of Mara's little... umm...."  
"Sure. Go ahead," I replied, resignedly.  
To simplify yet another long tale, Skuld brought out one of her little devices and used  
it to scan me.  
"All clear," she said, "although you really should cut down on your salt intake."  
I laughed out loud. "Okay, I can do that."  



	6. Episode 6

*Episode 6*  
  
One weekend, while Keiichi and 'Koujiku' were having lunch, I 'blinked' in,  
eyes-a-glowing. "You again?!?" exclaimed Keiichi at the same moment that 'Koujiku'  
yelled, "What the hell?!?!"  
"Well, yes. It HAS been a while, hasn't it, Keiichi," I said.  
"Almost a month," Keiichi replied.  
"Umm.... Keiichi? You know this guy?" 'Koujiku' interjected.  
"Yes, and no, Koujiku," I said.  
"And how the Hell do you know my name?!?"  
"Umm, Koujiku, it's best not to ask that," said Keiichi.  
"Oh, good. I see you've learned at least one lesson," I replied with a grin.  
"I guess...," Keiichi said reluctantly.  
"Anyway, what's with your eyes," said 'Koujiku'.  
"Oh, this?" I said, pointing at them and turning them back to their usual brown, "It's a  
pretty simple trick. I could teach you, Keiichi, if you'd like."  
"Oh? What about me?"  
"I'm here in part because Keiichi has the potential to learn these things. You don't."  
"In part?"  
"Yes."  
"And what exactly do you mean by that?"  
"Umm... Koujiku? That's another of those questions that you really shouldn't ask  
him," Keiichi interjected into "our" conversation. I grinned again.  
"And why the Hell not?" 'Koujiku' asked me.  
"Because, Koujiku, he'll either say that it's 'one of those things that mortals aren't  
meant to know' or he'll explain, but leave you with a hundred more questions that you  
AREN'T 'meant to know' the answers to. You should save those questions when the  
answer's REALLY important, and there's a chance you'll get a straight answer," Keiichi  
replied.  
I grinned again. "Yes, that's basically it, except I ALWAYS give a straight answer," I  
said, "Anyhow, Keiichi, if you'd like, my offer still stands."  
"Oh?" asked Keiichi suspiciously, "What's the catch?"  
"There isn't one, really, but you'll have to be careful of when you use it."  
"And what are you hiding this time?"  
"Nothing. Of course, it's a skill like any other; you'll get better and better at it with  
time," I responded, "Plus, the extent that your eyes change is proportionate to the extent  
to which you've developed your potential."  
"And what do you mean by that?"  
"Just what I've said. You'll be lucky if you can keep your eyes altered for five minutes  
at first, but eventually you'll be able to not even notice the effort," I said.  
"Not that. The bit about the extent of the changes," he replied.  
"Oh. That. Well, right now, I'd say your irises would become white. They wouldn't  
glow; that doesn't happen until you've developed your potential quite a bit further."  
"See what I mean about trying not to ask him unless it's really important?" Keiichi  
asked 'Koujiku'.  
"Yes, I think so," 'Koujiku' replied, "You never get the answer you wanted."  
"That tends to be true, Koujiku, but you always get the answer you need," I said.  
"And what do you mean by that?" responded Koujiku.  
"That's..." I began, only to have Keiichi chime in, "another of those things mortals  
aren't meant to know."  
"Basically, yes," I replied, smiling.  
"Oh, that's a comfort," said Koujiku.  
"Actually, that was Keiichi's response to a pretty similar situation."  
"I'll bet. What was the question that time?"  
"Who I am."  
"Oh. So that's why he told me not to ask."  
"Yep," I said, "I was pretty glad to see he understood."  
"So that's why you were grinning like that."  
"Yep. Anyway, Keiichi, just focus your eyes on an object somewhere, and mentally  
focus on a point just in front of your eyes."  
"Like this?" Keiichi said, his irises white.  
"You've got it," I said as Keiichi's eyes went back to normal, "Don't worry, it's tiring  
at first. Just practice a bit and you'll be able to keep it up for as long as you want. Also, I  
warned Mara to stay away. She won't bother you for a bit," I said and 'blinked' out.  
"And what the Hell was that about?" asked 'Koujiku'.  
"Who knows?" replied Keiichi, "I certainly don't. We could ask him, but do you  
really think it's worth it?"  
"Nah."  



	7. Episode 7

*Episode 7*  
  
A few days later, while Keiichi was alone in his room (Around 8:30 at night), I  
'blinked' in again.  
"Oh, hello," he said.  
"Not that surprised to see me anymore?"  
"Nope. I'm getting used to it."  
"Good. You've been practicing that little trick I taught you, I see."  
"Yes. I can keep it up for almost twenty minutes at a time, now."  
"Yes, I know. You have a few questions, I believe."  
"Of course I do! Isn't that a given? You've been leaving me with nothing BUT  
questions!"  
"No, that's not true. I've left you with a few answers as well, and taught you more  
things than you realize."  
"Oh? And your so-called answers only leave me with more questions!"  
"Yes, that's true. I thought I explained that I really didn't have much choice in that,  
though."  
"Maybe. You obviously brought the subject up for a reason, though."  
"Yes, I did."  
"What was it, then?"  
"Another of those--"  
"Things mortals aren't meant to know, right?"  
"Yes."  
"Why are there so many of them, really?"  
"Actually, there are only three. The problem is, they lead to other things that can't be  
understood without knowing them."  
"Oh?"  
"Yes."  
"What are they?"  
"Well, the future for one."  
"You're implying that you know what's going to happen before it does?"  
"No, I'm stating it."  
"So, you know what effect your actions are going to have? Doesn't that get a bit  
boring?"  
"Yes."  
"Okay... what's the second?"  
"The true nature of the Universe."  
"Oh?"  
"Yes."  
"Could you elaborate?"  
"No."  
"Okay...."  
"Before you ask, the identity of the third is another of 'those things,' as you put it."  
"Oh?"  
"Yes."  
"And why is that not comforting?"  
"And why are you asking rhetorical questions?"  
"Good point."  
"Yes."  
"Okay... this is certainly weird."  
"Yes," I said, "But what I came here to tell you is that doing the right thing for the  
wrong reasons is sometimes worse than doing the wrong thing."  
"Did you come here just to tell me that?"  
"No."  
"What were your others?"  
"See reason one."  
"What?"  
"The first thing that mortals aren't meant to know."  
"What?"  
"The future. I'm trying to get you to think."  
"You're succeeding at that."  
"Yes, I am."  
"So, what's this right thing that I'm doing for the wrong reasons?"  
"Practicing."  
"Oh?"  
"Yes."  
"What do you mean?"  
"Well, why *are* you practicing?"  
"Well, umm..."  
"Want me to answer it?"  
"Umm..."  
"Well, you're practicing because I told you that you should, not to mention that  
Belldandy has been encouraging you to."  
"I guess that's it."  
"It is."  
"And..."  
"That's not why you should. You should practice because *you* want to, because  
you want to learn. You need to do this for yourself."  
"Why on earth would I spend so much effort on something so trivial?"  
"Ever thought of why Belldandy wants you to practice?"  
"Yes, a little."  
"Ever asked her?"  
"No, I just want to make her happy."  
"True, you do want to. You need to understand, however, that she wants you to  
learn for the simple reason that she knows how important it is."  
"Important? How can a little trick like that be important?"  
"Because it's the basis for many other things."  
"Oh? Like what?"  
"Oh, just about every pseudopsionic ability you're going to learn."  
"Pseudopsionic?"  
"Yes."  
"What do you mean?"  
"Well, psionics are basically the powers of the mind. Telekinesis, clairvoyance,  
telepathy, you get the idea."  
"And the 'pseudo' part?"  
"Well, I'm not teaching you the traditional psionic method of doing things."  
"Oh."  
"You have another important question."  
"Oh? What?"  
"Think."  
"Hmm...," Keiichi stood and thought for a moment, "Well, if you know what's going  
to happen in the future, I pretty much can't count on anything that's happened since we  
met--or even before then--as having been a coincidence."  
"True."  
"So, Koujiku..."  
"Yes, I arranged for you to meet."  
"Why? He obviously doesn't like you."  
"Because there are many things he can teach you."  
"I thought you said he couldn't learn any of the skills you were going to teach me!"  
"Not skills, Keiichi. Lessons."  
"Could you please clarify?"  
"Life, Keiichi. He may not be able to learn the skills I'm planning on teaching you,  
but he already knows most of the rest."  
"So that's why he didn't approve of my practicing."  
"Yes. He's a very mature person. He doesn't mind the practice, but if you're going to  
learn this, it can't be for any reason other than that you want to. Koujiku understands  
that."  
"You know, he said as much."  
"I know. I saw it."  
"You did?"  
"Just because you can't see me doesn't mean I'm not there, Keiichi," I said and  
'blinked' out.  



	8. Episode 8

*Episode 8*  
  
The next day, Keiichi related the events to the Goddesses. Urd was confused ("What  
did he mean about doing the right thing for the wrong reasons, or was that the wrong  
thing for the right reasons? What did he say, anyway?"), Skuld was curious ("Not the  
traditional method? And he knows the future? And he's been following you around  
invisibly? Why hasn't Banpei picked him up yet? Hmm... I'll have to modify his  
sensors..."), and Belldandy was happy ("That's very wise of him, Keiichi.").  
After his first class, Keiichi stopped Koujiku and took him aside. After Keiichi  
explained what had happened, 'Koujiku' smiled.  
"Why are you smiling?" asked Keiichi.  
"I've got something else to be grateful to him for."  
"Oh?"  
"He arranged for us to meet. I, for one, am glad he did."  
"How can you be so sure? I mean, what if-" Keiichi said, only to be cut off.  
"Let's not get into that. For one thing, you obviously think that I don't like him.  
That's not quite true."  
"Oh? You were pretty aggressive with him before."  
"Not really. I don't like it when he hides things, but I understand why now. You see,  
he really only has three options when you ask him a question like that."  
"What?"  
"Well, he could refuse to answer, like he has been. It may be annoying, but it's better  
than the other two."  
"Which are?"  
"He could just lie. The fact that he's being honest is one of the best things I've seen of  
him so far."  
"And the third?"  
"He could just tell you, but let's think of the consequences if he did. If he were to tell  
you what the future held, you'd be pretty upset by it. You might even misinterpret what  
he said, and have it result in disaster. Or, you might get complaisant about it, which  
would be just as bad, if not worse. That's what he meant when he said that mortals  
shouldn't know the future."  
"Yeah, but what about the other two items?"  
"Well, as for the true nature of the Universe, I'm at a bit of a handicap to explain."  
"Because you don't know yourself, right? That's understandable."  
"I just have to assume that there's a reason. My best guess is that it's something you  
have to figure out yourself."  
"What do you mean?"  
"There are some things in life that no one can teach you, and that you have to learn  
and understand on your own. When you're a child, you don't really understand that other  
people are people, just like you are. No matter how many times people explain it to you,  
you just don't get it, until one day you DO. Are you following me?"  
"Sort of."  
"Well, good. In any event, what my guess is is that the true nature of the universe is  
like that, except that if he explains it to you, you *WON'T* understand, and that it'll  
make it harder for you to understand it in the future."  
"But why is it something mortals aren't *MEANT* to know?"  
"Knowledge is power, Keiichi. If someone is told, and understands imperfectly, they  
would probably be able to do tremendous damage. Why do you think that the gods and  
goddesses only reveal themselves to certain people?"  
"I don't know. I see why they only grant wishes to some people, though."  
"Well, Keiichi, that part's pretty obvious. The problem, however, is that if they start  
saying 'Hi, I'm a God' to every mortal on the street, very few people are going to be able  
to live with the knowledge. Some would get inferiority complexes, some would just drift  
along life, assuming that they can't change their fate, and some would just get angry at  
them and try to hunt down and kill deities. Obviously, they'd fail, but it's still a problem."  
"Then why don't the demons just reveal the gods' existence?"  
"Balance of power, Keiichi. For every mortal who'd go hunting gods or be turned to  
depression, etc. ten would go out hunting and trying to kill demons."  
"And they obviously don't want that."  
"Yes, Keiichi, that's about right."  
"Hmm... I think I understand."  
"Good."  
"So, what about the third?"  
"Not enough evidence. I can't say what it is, and without any clue as to what it is,  
understanding as to why it's 'one of those things' is impossible."  
"Oh." said Keiichi, a bit disappointed.  
"Don't worry. He must have a good reason."  
"What makes you so confident his intentions are benevolent?"  
"Now, that's really difficult to explain. I don't really know where to start."  
"Huh?"  
"Well, first off, he obviously isn't omnipotent."  
"What makes you say that?"  
"If he was, he wouldn't have any interest in you, Keiichi, one way or the other, and  
he wouldn't have to do what he is, anyway. He'd just think about it, and you'd be  
whatever he wanted you to be."  
"Yeah, but what if he just doesn't want to?"  
"Even if he doesn't want to, the fact that he could would still be enough to invalidate  
the concept of free will. We have a choice between believing that we have free will, or  
that he's all-powerful. Since reason is dependant on free will, we have the choice of  
believing that he's omnipotent or that we can think."  
"And you've obviously though about the subject, right?"  
"Exactly."  
"So now what?"  
"Well, first we need to figure out what some of his limits are."  
"Oh?"  
"Yes. As I've already established, he does have them. The next thing is that for  
whatever reason, he likes telling the truth. He doesn't like to lie."  
"What makes you say that?"  
"Has he?"  
"What?"  
"Lied to you."  
"Not that I've caught, but still, what about ones that I haven't?"  
"Not likely. You've asked him some pretty awkward questions, and he's responded  
honestly. Besides, he's obviously smart enough to realize that even one lie, whatever it  
was, would be enough to destroy his credibility. He wants you to trust him, and is taking  
extraordinary measures to ensure that he's trustworthy. Why go through all that trouble  
only to have it become wasted?"  
"Okay, I can see that, but what else?"  
"Next, while he does know what consequences his actions to have--we have to  
accept that if we accept the previous item since he said that he does--he doesn't always  
know all of them."  
"Oh?"  
"Chances are that he sees the consequences of his actions as just that: chances. Or  
probability to put it another way."  
"Why do you say that?"  
"There are two major pieces of evidence: one, he wouldn't be able to predict the  
future with total accuracy unless he could predict our actions with total certainty, and  
that would mean that we'd have to throw out free will as a concept."  
"I can see that. So what you're saying is that if he could predict our actions with total  
certainty, it would just be another form of mind control."  
"Exactly. The second, however, is something a bit more direct."  
"Oh?"  
"He said that he preferred to do things indirectly, didn't he?"  
"Yes, he did. What does that have to do with his abilities, though?"  
"Ever given any thought to why he's prefer things that way?"  
"Not really..."  
"Well, there's only one real reason he would."  
"And that is?"  
"Well, if he only sees the *probable* consequences of his actions, he has to take  
steps to minimize the unintentional consequences of them. The more directly he does  
things, though, the more risk there is of having those consequences. It's really the only  
logical explanation."  
"Hmm...."  
"Think about what I've said. It's a lot to chew."  
"Yes, that it is."  
"There're just two more things for now."  
"Oh?"  
"Yes. First, among the things he's offering you is immortality. In other words, he's  
giving you the chance to be with Belldandy forever. I'm pretty sure you want that."  
Keiichi just nodded.  
"Well, that little lesson was obviously the first step towards that. He wants you to  
*want* to learn what he can teach you, and that's just one obvious reason why you  
should."  
"That it is... What was the second thing?"  
"Well, I'm almost done with that bike for the race. It's in a week, I believe? I should  
be able to finish it tonight. We'd better test it before the race. Come to my place  
tomorrow to try it out?"  
"Sure!"  
"Great."  



	9. Episode 9

*Episode 9*  
  
The next day, Keiichi stopped by "Koujiku's" house and rang the doorbell. "Hi,  
Keiichi! Come on in!" I greeted.  
"Hello, Koujiku-kun," replied Keiichi as he stepped in, taking off his shoes, "So,  
where's the bike?"  
"Right this way, Keiichi," I said as I led him over to the garage. Upon arriving, I  
pointed to it and said, "So, what do you think?"  
"Umm.... It's an.... interesting design."  
The bike was obviously adapted from a standard motorbike design, but it was...  
unconventional to say the least. The frame, instead of some metal was made out of what  
looked to be gelatin. The engine didn't have a single metal component, and neither did  
the rest of the bike.  
"Well, Aerogel Research, Inc. owed me some money, so when I told them about the  
race, we worked out a little deal."  
"Oh?"  
"Yeah. You see..." I said, and walked over to the bike, "This bike weighs less than  
half a kilo." I then picked up the bike with one hand and threw it in the air, catching it,  
also with one hand.  
"Impressive... How did you manage it? Does it work?"  
"Yes, it works. The engine is made of a similar material, with coatings in some areas.  
The entire bike is made out of aerogels, in fact. To be precise, Aerogel Research's latest  
prototypes.  
The frame material's stronger than steel, but weighs almost nothing. In fact, most of the  
weight comes from the coatings on the piston heads in the engine."  
"Woah."  
"Yeah. I was pretty impressed by the materials as well. Apparently, they'd been  
experimenting with new components that would be useful in engines and structural  
components. After I gave them my design, it was pretty simple to get them to make the  
thing. Here's the key," I said and threw him a key (Also made of aerogels), "The big  
thing to keep in mind is that this bike weighs so little that you'll have to be careful to  
keep your balance. I couldn't add any electronics without adding considerably to the  
weight, so it doesn't have much of a control panel. Pretty much just an analog  
speedometer and fuel indicator. The wheels are especially made, as well."  
"How much did Aerogel Research owe you, anyway?"  
"Umm... trust me, you don't want to know."  
"How much did that bike COST?!?"  
"Hmm... let me see... around seventy million yen."  
"WHAT?!?" Keiichi said, shocked.  
"Well, a good part of that was covered by Aerogel Research. They think this race'll  
be great publicity for their company. Besides, it's not like it canceled their debt. I just  
gave them an extension--an interest-free extension--on their loan. I'd say this thing cost  
me less than a tenth of that."  
"That's still a LOT of money for a college student!"  
"How do you think I afforded this house? I'd say I'm worth around... oh... half a  
trillion yen."  
"WOAH!!"  
"Well, most of that's pretty tied up. It's not like I could just go off an buy stuff with  
it. Besides, it's just a tool. A useful tool, I must say, but a tool nonetheless. In many  
ways, you're richer than I am."  
"How do you figure that?"  
"Oh, come on! I may have money, but you've found the love of your life, are living  
with three deities, have potential that even Kami-sama doesn't know what to do with...."  
"Okay, I get your point. Doesn't this add another possible reason to why that guy  
wanted us to meet?"  
"No. The money's a side effect. You see, my parents left me around five hundred  
thousand dollars, US. I invested almost all of it, and, well, it's grown. A lot."  
"I can see that. What do you mean, 'almost' all of it?"  
"I mean, Keiichi, that I bought a cake."  
"Huh?"  
"Twelve dollars, seventy-six cents."  
"Huh?"  
"I bought myself a birthday cake. Shared it with the kids at the orphanage, too."  
"Oh."  
"Actually, I'm pretty good at investing. It's pretty easy to figure out how a company'll  
do. Hell, I invested $100,000 in a startup called Microsoft... Need I say more?"  
"Umm... no."  
"Good."  
Just then, the phone rang (Yes, I arranged for that, too). "Just a moment, Keiichi," I  
said, and picked up the garage phone.  
"Moshi-moshi. This is the Seimeino resi... Hi! How's it going!" I said in Japanese,  
"Yes... You are? That's great! Umm... Okay... two weeks from now? See you then!" I  
then hung up. "Keiichi, great news. An old friend of mine just enrolled in Nekomi Tech.  
She'll be here in two weeks. I can't wait to see what Aoshima does when she gets  
here...."  
"What?"  
"Well, she's... umm... Ah, hell. One moment," I said, grabbing the door to the main  
portion of the house and running through. Twenty seconds later, I returned, carrying a  
photo of 'Koujiku' standing next to an *extremely* beautiful-looking young woman.  
Think Urd's body, Sayoko's hair, Belldandy's eyes, and Skuld's bearing and you'll begin  
to get the idea.  
"This is Allison," I said, "and frankly, you'd be better off trying to take liberties with  
Urd than with her."  
"Woah. She's beautiful."  
"Yeah, she is."  
"Your girlfriend?"  
"No. We're old friends. I've known her for over twenty years."  
"She's an orphan, too?"  
"Sort of. Her mother died giving birth to her, but her father went MIA in the US  
army."  
"What?"  
"Missing in action. As it turns out, he was captured by the old Soviet Union. A few  
years ago, the Russians finally admitted to having him... and she left the orphanage."  
"Oh."  
"The really fun part, though, is that while she was at the orphanage, she was  
obsessed with finding him. When she was five, she managed to cobble up a GPS and a  
tac-nuke. She, well, is a *lot* like Skuld in terms of mechanical talent, but without the  
mecha fetish and a lot more responsible... Uh oh. Mind not telling Skuld I said that?"  
Keiichi laughed. "No problem," he said between chuckles.  



	10. Episode 10

*Episode 10*  
  
Keiichi won the race. It wasn't even close. Both the fuel efficiency and time segments  
fell effortlessly before him. Aerogel Research was very happy, not to mention the NIT  
motor club, who won all three prize money awards, totaling to around 5 million yen (not  
to mention keeping the bike). Keiichi's ribs almost popped from Tamiya's bearhug. As he  
was recovering, 'Koujiku' approached him.  
"Want to borrow my jacket next time?"  
"What?"  
"Next time you race for the club. You know, the spiked one?"  
"Oh," Keiichi said in sudden understanding, "Definitely."  
"Okay. It ought to keep you from breaking a rib."  
"Yes, that it should."  
"By the way, I see you've been practicing. Your eyes are white."  
"They are? Oops," he said embarrassedly, and changed them back to normal, then  
continued, "Yeah, I have. It's kind of odd, though."  
"What is?"  
"I've been seeing things before they happen."  
"Oh?"  
"Yeah. When I saw the other racers, I *knew* what they were going to do in the  
race."  
"Hmm... I can't say I'm surprised."  
"NANI?!?!"  
"Keiichi, that guy," 'Koujiku' started, only to have 'my' disembodied voice interrupt.  
"Just call me Mikoto. It's not my name, but it'll do for now."  
"Ok, " 'Koujiku' continued, "Anyway, Mikoto said that that trick he taught you was  
the basis for quite a few other things, remember?"  
"Hai."  
"Well, it seems that you've figured out one of those 'other things' on your own. I'd  
have to say that Mikoto is probably quite pleased."  
"Oh? Hmm... I know you're listening in, Mikoto. Is he right?"  
Again, my disembodied voice responded, "Yes, he is, and I am quite pleased. Mind  
you, you do have a long way to go, but why don't you show 'Koujiku' your eyes?"  
"What?"  
"That trick. Try it."  
Keiichi stopped for a moment before doing just that. In addition to his irises, his  
pupils turned white as well.  
"Well, I see the blood vessels are still there."  
"What do you mean, Koujiku?"  
"In your eyes. Your pupils turned white this time as well as your irises."  
"Oh?"  
"Yes. I think you and Belldandy have another thing to celebrate, ne?"  
"Hai!"  
That evening, Tamiya and Ootaki had another of their 'little' parties (Really! If there  
were any houses within a mile of the place, the police would arrest those two for  
disturbing the peace or violating the noise ordinances!). This time, however, Keiichi had  
managed to slip outside without anyone noticing. Frankly, that's an impressive feat. Even  
I'd have difficulty doing it! (Of course, for me, 'difficulty' is a relative term...) I took the  
opportunity to "blink" in.  
"Hello, Keiichi."  
"Konnichiwa, Mikoto-sama."  
"I'll tell you what I told Belldandy. You really don't have to be so formal. In many  
ways, we're equals."  
"NANI?!?!?"  
"Keiichi, I'm a *LOT* more powerful than you, and I know many things that you  
don't. I've developed my potential to a considerable degree, but I won't claim to have  
fulfilled all of it. You're still developing yours, and you don't have as much of it as I did,  
but that's why I'm teaching you. Someday, your power is going to surpass that of  
everyone you know, except mine. That's an almost complete list of the ways in which  
I'm your superior."  
"That's an awful lot of ways."  
"No, not really."  
"How do you figure?"  
"Keiichi, those are differences of degree, not of kind. Keiichi, take Urd and Skuld as  
an example. Urd is more powerful than Skuld ever will be, even when her powers fully  
manifest. Not, mind you, that that'll happen any time soon, but it will sooner or later.  
They are equals, though, in many ways."  
"Yes, but they're sisters!"  
"Keiichi, that doesn't matter one bit. I learned that the hard way?"  
"What do you mean?"  
"I have had three brothers and a sister, Keiichi. One is dead, and pray you never meet  
the others."  
"What?"  
"Keiichi, my sister and one of my brothers are insane. My sister more so than my  
brother, actually, but they both are."  
"I'm sorry to hear that. I hope that they're not as powerful as you, though."  
"No, they're not."  
"Good. I'm afraid to ask about the other brother."  
"You should be. He's the one responsible for their... condition."  
"NANI?!? How?"  
"Keiichi, he poisoned our parents. My brother and sister were... affected by the  
poison."  
"What?"  
"Keiichi, ask Belldandy what Ktharra oil is. That's the poison he used. He placed  
almost a centiliter of it in our well. My eldest brother and I were away at the time, so we  
avoided the effects, but... `when we got back, our parents were dead and our siblings...  
they only managed to survive because of our powers, but our parents didn't HAVE our  
powers. They died."  
"I'm sorry. I had no idea..."  
"Keiichi, that was a long time ago. Do you know just how old I am?"  
"Actually, no."  
"Keiichi, I've been alive longer that the Yggdrasil system has been online. I'll be  
celebrating my ten-quadrillionth birthday in only a few millennia, as time flows here. It's  
not exactly uniform around the omniverse."  
"Why are you telling me this?"  
"For the same reason I told you what I did of why I'm here. You have the right to  
know. I could just go on as I have been, teaching you, and it would be far easier for both  
of us, but..."  
"I understand, I think."  
"Good. Keiichi, I'm telling you what you're ready for, but please understand that  
there's a lot more that I'm not. I'm genuinely sorry about that, but you're not ready for it  
yet. I hope, however, that you've begun to understand some of why I'm keeping  
secrets."  
"Yes, I think I am. You're trying to protect me."  
"Yes and no, Keiichi. I am trying to protect you, but not from what you think."  
"Oh?"  
"Yes."  
"And I don't suppose you'll elaborate?"  
"No."  
"One of those things?"  
"Keiichi, I know what would happen if I were to tell you. Not all of it, mind you, but  
I do know some. Trust me, you're not ready for everything I could tell you."  
"I understand, I think."  
"Good. Now, there's another reason why I came here," I said, pulling a phone 'out of  
thin air', "Kam-chan? Remember that discussion? Yes... Yes, he's ready. Level three, like  
I said. Good."  
"What was that abou...," Keiichi started only to be interrupted by a lightning bolt  
hitting the ground between us, leaving some writing on the ground. He finally gathered  
enough courage to continue, "That was Kami-sama? And you called him Kam-chan?!?"  
"Yes. It was, and I did. I told you, I'm older than he is. Older than this entire  
universe, actually. As for the rest, have one of the Goddesses translate that note for you.  
I have to go, now. Tamiya and Ootaki will be out here any second. Not even they'd miss  
*that*," I said, gesturing to the writing on the ground. "At least they won't notice the  
writing. I've hidden it from all eyes but our kind's, those with divine blood's, and  
Koujiku's," I said and 'blinked' out.  



	11. Episode 11

*Episode 11*  
  
Later, Keiichi approached the Goddesses and told them what happened. Needless to  
say, they wanted to see the note. After the requisite shocked expression on their faces  
upon reading it (Let's face it. Has Kami EVER sent them a notice that DIDN'T surprise  
them?), Keiichi asked them what it said.  
"Kei-chan, it's rather long. I'll start translating as soon as I can," Belldandy said.  
"Okay. Bell-chan, what's Ktharra oil?"  
The three goddesses stared in mixed shock and horror. "Wha... where..." Belldandy  
started.  
"Yes, Keiichi, how do you know that name?" Urd asked.  
"Keiichi..." Skuld said regretfully.  
"What? What did I say?" Keiichi responded.  
"Keiichi... Keiichi..." Belldandy said sobbing, "We have standing orders to kill any  
mortal who even mentions that... that..."  
Skuld leaned over to comfort her big sister. "There, there, oneesan," she started.  
"But... But Mikoto said to ask you..."  
Belldandy suddenly looked up hopefully. "Do you mean," she said and followed it  
with my name. Again, mortals can't say it, so why would I be able to write it in a mortal  
alphabet? You just don't have the phonetic symbols for it.  
"Yes, I think that's his name. He said just to call him Mikoto since I can't say his real  
name."  
"Well, then," Urd said, "that changes everything. Don't worry, Belldandy. If he said  
to ask us, this must be what Kami mentioned in that note. We don't have to kill him."  
"What's going on?" Keiichi started, only to be interrupted by Urd.  
"Keiichi, Ktharra oil is the single most hideous, vile poison ever to exist. One drop of  
it could kill every living thing in Japan and most of China. Even the survivors would be  
affected, not that there would be any within ten thousand miles. The best a survivor  
could expect would to be to go totally, completely insane and to... Ungh. It's too  
disgusting to mention. Not even we could survive if we were exposed to enough of it."  
"What do you mean by 'enough of it'?"  
"Were someone to place a drop of Ktharra oil in a well in Hong Kong, within a week  
all three of us would be dead. Within a month, the whole world would be affected.  
Maybe a few thousand people in America would survive, but they'd never be the  
same..."  
"But Mikoto said that his parents were killed when his brother poisoned his house's  
water supply with almost a centiliter of it, and that his siblings who were there  
survived!"  
"Oh, HE could survive quite a bit more of it than we would. Not even he could stay  
sane after *direct* contact with more than a milliliter or so."  
"I see..."  
"Before you ask anything else, we'd better translate that for you."  
"Okay."  
Ten minutes later, Belldandy was considerably calmer, and Skuld was still casting  
ugly glances at Keiichi when Urd returned with a paper written in Japanese. It read  
(Roughly translated to English):  
"Norns:  
"The mortal known as Morisato Keiichi is, at the request of (illegible characters)  
granted level-three clearance to the Yggdrasil system and the information contained  
therein. In addition, standing orders are suspended in relation to one additional request  
by (same illegible characters), and the Goddess Belldandy is hereby given permission to  
remove the secondary governors on her seal. On a different note, the Goddess Urd may  
find it worthy of note that Allison Graveson will be moving to Japan within a week.  
Standing orders pertaining to her are not changed.  
"Kami-Sama.  
  
"P.S.: You are to translate this notice for him, as he cannot yet read our  
language."  
"Keiichi," Urd started, "This is unheard-of. Level-three clearance is the same  
clearance level that we have."  
"Oh?"  
"Yes. Actually, everyone has level-one clearance. Level-two is for mortals who meet  
the requirements for being granted a wish. Level-three is for gods and goddesses, and  
only Kami-sama himself has level-four clearance."  
My voice interrupted, "That's not quite true, Urd. I have level-four clearance myself."  
Urd looked surprised. "I didn't know."  
"Yes, well, it's one of those things that Kam-chan doesn't exactly make public."  
"Oh," Urd said, "I can see that."  



	12. Episode 12

*Episode 12*  
  
A few (relatively) uneventful days later (On a Friday), 'Koujiku' stopped by the  
temple while Keiichi was raking the grounds.  
"Konnichiwa, Keiichi," I said.  
"Konnichiwa, Koujiku-kun," he replied.  
"Keiichi, Allison will be arriving tomorrow. I'd like to hold a little welcoming dinner  
for her."  
Keiichi nodded.  
"Well, I'd like to invite you, Belldandy, and Skuld. I'd invite Urd, but I doubt that  
would be a good idea."  
"What makes you say that?"  
"Allison and Urd have... a history. They don't really like each other."  
"Wait a moment. Do you mean Allison GRAVESON?"  
"That's her last name, yes. How do you know it?"  
Keiichi pointed at the note still embedded in the ground.  
"Hmm.... Pretty archaic, but Norse runes nonetheless... Hmm... Omedetto, Keiichi. I  
presume that name refers to Mikoto?"  
"Yes."  
"Hmm... What standing orders?"  
"Mikoto-sama told me to ask the Goddesses about Ktharra oil. They have..."  
"Standing orders to kill anyone who mentions it?"  
"How did you know?"  
"I'm not surprised. Ktharra oil is really vile stuff."  
"How..."  
"Ask Urd."  
"What?"  
"Ask Urd. Mention that I'm an old friend of Allison's."  
"Okay. I will."  
"Anyway, how does 18 O'clock sound? My place?"  
"Sure. I'll tell them."  
"Great. See you there," I said and turned to leave, "Sayonara."  
"Sayonara, Koujiku-kun. See you tomorrow."  
A few hours later, Keiichi asked Urd about Allison.  
"Well, Keiichi, before I came here, I was the sysop for Yggdrasil, remember?"  
"Hai."  
"Allison Graveson has a rather dubious honor among us. She's the only mortal  
*ever* to break into Yggdrasil's secure database."  
"NANI?"  
"Yes. I mean just what I said."  
"You mean that she *hacked* into Heaven?"  
"Essentially, yes. That BITCH bypassed *all* of my security protocols, creating  
enough bugs to keep Skuld busy for days, and to make matters worse, she did it with  
*mortal* equipment! I expected to get into ROYAL trouble with Kami-sama! And then,  
as if that wasn't enough, Kami-sama forbade me from taking any action against her!"  
"Oh. So you want revenge."  
"Damn straight, I do!"  
"What did she do, anyway? What files did she look at?"  
"Only one. Her father's. I managed to stop her before she got to the section on  
'present location', though."  
"Oh. Koujiku mentioned that she was obsessed with finding him."  
"Oh, that's not all. A few years later, I was assigned to grant that BITCH a wish!  
Think about it!"  
"She met the qualifications?"  
"Or so Kami-sama said, but... Arrrggggghhh."  
"What did she wish for?"  
"To know where her father was."  
"That's not that bad."  
"Oh, you might think so... except that her father was a Russian POW. The next day,  
she hacked into Yggdrasil AGAIN and edited the files on his captors."  
"Oh?"  
"That... that..."  
"What did she do?"  
"She cursed them. In such a way that the curse would be removed if and only if they  
released her father. Not even we could remove her curse. And Kami-sama STILL  
wouldn't let me get revenge..."  
"I see. What does that have to do with Ktharra oil?"  
"What?!"  
"Koujiku knew what Ktharra oil was. When I asked how, he said to ask you and to  
say that he was an old friend of Allison's."  
"Oh...," said Urd, sounding disappointed, "There was a cross-reference from one of  
her father's captors' files to the file on Ktharra oil. She looked it up while she was in  
Yggdrasil the second time. Kami-sama forbade me from doing anything about it, though.  
Something about her 'being mature enough to handle the information, and to not tell  
anyone who wasn't'. He even forbade me from going after anyone she told!"  
"Koujiku's safe, then?"  
"Yes, he would be, even if it wasn't for that order."  
"What do you mean?"  
"A few weeks ago, I tried to zap him with a lightning bolt. It didn't work."  



	13. Episode 13

*Episode 13*  
  
The following evening at "Koujiku's" was rather odd, albeit not up to the standards  
of my youth. Belldandy's Skuld's, and Keiichi's arrival was pretty normal (They  
knocked), but Allison managed to surprise me. Of course, that's not easy. Then again, I  
really hadn't been paying as much attention to her escapades as I should have been. After  
chalking up a mental note to tell her that while her getting a pilot's license was nice, she  
didn't have to show off by arriving by plane, helicopter, jetpack, AND parachute. Really!  
I mean, flying over the place in a plane, jumping out on a portable helicopter, collapsing  
it in mid-air, using a jetpack to slow your fall, and then finishing it off by pulling the  
ripcord on a parachute for the landing... It's a bit odd, even for her. Dinner was up to my  
usual standard (Belldandy asked for the recipe of every other dish. I gave them to her.  
Fortunately, I didn't cook any of my specialties. I can just imagine what Keiichi would  
do if 'Koujiku' was to serve "roast Martian time-shifting wombat with cranberry sauce".  
Would you believe that the ingredients are actually pretty easy for me to get?)  
Skuld was duly impressed by Allison's rather... impressive display of the fact that  
she's, well, a "hen na gaijin", Allison's mechanical talent, and, most of all, Allison's sense  
of the appropriate. She brought all of us gifts. Skuld's was a pocket-sized ice-cream  
maker. Allison's statement about it says almost everything: "I heard about your love of  
ice-cream and cobbled this up out of some spare parts I had lying around in my back  
yard. Be careful about that stirring blade, though." The stirring blade had been salvaged  
from a B-14 bomber's engines. I still don't know what she was doing with a B-14 in her  
back yard, and I'm not asking.  
Allison's gift for me was quite obvious. She always had a talent for being  
unpredictable; even I usually can't figure out what she's planning. I find it quite  
refreshing, actually. As such, her gift for me was just that: managing to startle me with  
her entrance. It was JUST weird enough to be surprising, but not weird enough that I'd  
expect it.  
Allison's gift for Belldandy and Keiichi didn't come up until after dinner, when she  
asked to speak to me in private.  
"Allison, are you sure they're ready for this?"  
"Sensei, you always move too slowly. They're in love."  
"Yes, but I'm worried about-"  
"Sensei, they're ready. I know what you're worried about. I've modified it  
accordingly."  
"You have? How could you manage that without-"  
"Simple. By-"  
"Oh. Yes, that would work. I didn't think of that."  
"You're still biting off more than you can chew. Really, none of us can even come  
close to collocating in as many universes as you do constantly!"  
"And?"  
"It's distracting you! You're trying to do too much! Drop a few trillion worlds. It  
won't make that big of a difference!"  
"No. A few trillion universes? You know how much of a difference I can make in  
each and every one of them!"  
"Yes, I do. But which is worth more, a few septillion lives or you?"  
"We've had this discussion before! I am not abandoning even one person in any  
universe to my brother!"  
"And that's very generous of you. You must realize, though, that you're spreading  
yourself too thin. Even with our help, you can't possibly cover every universe!"  
"No, but we can certainly try! I'll take a vacation when we catch my brother, and not  
a century before!"  
"Look, we've had this discussion before. They're ready, and that's that. And I'm  
anchoring."  
"WHAT?! They know about 'Mikoto', but to reveal what you are so soon..."  
"So? I won't blow 'Koujiku's' cover if that's what you're worried about."  
"He'll definitely find it suspicious!"  
"So let him. I've spent long enough building my cover in this world that the  
revelation that it IS a cover won't do anything. Besides, all we did was reenact my  
childhood in this world."  
"Yeah, with a few changes."  
"Yes. How was I supposed to know that Urd would stop my attempt to get Dad's  
records this time?"  
"At least I helped you maintain your cover by asking Kam-chan to-"  
"And I'm grateful. But the fact remains, Keiichi knowing that I'm from another  
universe won't blow your cover."  
"Do you promise not to reveal anything to Skuld? I don't trust her reaction. I see a  
57% probability of-"  
"That I can do."  
"I still think it's reckless, but if you insist, I won't stop you."  



	14. Episode 14

*Episode 14*  
  
When Allison and I returned to Keiichi and Belldandy, "Koujiku's" face bore an  
expression of shock. Belldandy, perceptive as always, noticed this. "What was that  
about, Koujiku-san?" she asked worriedly.  
"Keiichi, Belldandy, we need to talk. Skuld, Allison's heating up a tea kettle. Why  
don't you go home?"  
"What?" Skuld asked suspiciously.  
"Don't worry, Skuld. Keiichi and Belldandy will return as well soon. I just need to  
talk to them for a bit."  
"Okay, Koujiku-san. It's not like they'd try anything with you and Allison here, and I  
trust you."  
"Good. I'm glad I've earned your trust."  
"Yes, but I'm still suspicious of Allison. I do like her, but..."  
"I understand. She's caused your sister quite a bit of trouble."  
"Hai," she said, and started to continue before Allison's voice called out from the  
kitchen.  
"Skuld, the water's ready. You'd better get here before it gets cold."  
"Coming!" she yelled, "Just keep an eye on my sister."  
"Of course, Skuld."  
After Skuld left, the remaining four of us gathered in "Koujiku's" dining room.  
"You can come out, Urd." Allison said casually.  
"Damn. How long have you known I was here?" a mini-Urd replied from behind a  
bookshelf.  
"I've known since you got here, Urd. You may as well join us for this. I think you'll  
approve."  
"Kuso. Oh, well," she said, returning to her normal size, "And how did you?"  
"Well, Urd, I'm afraid to tell you that I've been keeping a secret from you."  
"What is it? You know I'll find out."  
"True. Oh, well," she said, turning her eyes white-and-glowing.  
"NANI?!?" Keiichi and Urd exclaimed at once.  
"But then, why-" Urd started, only to be silenced by my "blinking" in.  
"Because she needed a cover. I told Keiichi that his meeting Koujiku was my doing.  
Everything she's done here has been a part of that. We recreated her youth here, from  
her birth onwards. Almost everything was as close as we could make it without tipping  
our hands to either you gods and goddesses or Kam-chan. No one from this universe,  
not even Kami, knew her secret."  
"Why?" Urd asked angrily.  
"Well, Urd, I'm afraid those bugs Skuld had to take care of were your doing. In her  
world, she succeeded in her first hack attempt. When you cut her off, it was the first  
disruption to our plans. This isn't her world, and her Urd was a few seconds slower."  
"That doesn't answer the question."  
"Well, we had to set up this day properly. I didn't want her to reveal herself to you  
quite so soon, but she wanted to give Keiichi and Belldandy a gift. One that required  
that she do so."  
"You mean that even then you were planning to reveal her like this?"  
"No. I meant your meeting. She's my student, you know. Another of our kind,  
Keiichi."  
"She is? And she's from another universe?" Keiichi asked, shocked.  
"Yes."  
"And Koujiku?"  
"She just told him."  
Belldandy spoke up, "So that's why he was so surprised..."  
"Actually, the gift Allison has for you surprised him more, if anything."  
"NANI?!?" Urd and Keiichi said in unison as Belldandy gasped, "Oh, my."  
"Perhaps we should allow Allison to explain," 'Koujiku' said.  
"Yes, that's a good idea. I'll see you," I said and 'blinked' out.  
"Well, Allison, what is this 'gift' you have for my sister and Keiichi?" Urd asked  
suspiciously.  
"Urd, I'm sorry about what happened to you. You know, my universe's Urd and I are  
good friends. I never intended to get you into trouble. Actually, you wouldn't have had  
you listened to the order that Sensei asked Kami-san to give you."  
"You mean that order was your doing, too?"  
"No, that was Sensei's."  
"You mean Mikoto's?" Keiichi interrupted.  
"Yes, that is what he told you to call him."  
"Oh." Keiichi said, to be cut off by a gesture from 'Koujiku'.  
"Allison, you're getting off-topic. Remember, the gift."  
"Yes. Thank you. So, Urd, I'd like you to promise not to discuss this with Skuld."  
"Done. If you're about to do what I think you are, though, I hope you have a way to  
deal with-"  
"No, Urd, we're not going to give them a love potion or anything like that. Here, it'll  
be easier to explain if you can see what I do," she said, "There. I've granted you access  
to my vision. just look through my eyes."  
"What's that?" Urd said, seeing what looked like a line of fog connecting Keiichi and  
Belldandy.  
"That, Urd, is what you've so foolishly been trying to interfere with. It is the bond  
that they share."  
"What do you mean 'foolishly'?"  
"Urd, you have this tendency to meddle. Were you to have stepped back and really  
looked, you would have sensed this long ago. That bond is beautiful and powerful, but  
to the things you were doing, it is also very fragile. Had most of your schemes  
succeeded, that bond would have been shattered forever, and that would have been a  
great tragedy."  
"Huh?"  
"You still don't understand," Allison continued, shaking her head, "But, that bond is  
critical to what I plan to give them. You see, I would never destroy something like that.  
I can, however, make it stronger and help it grow. I can take that bond and form  
something far deeper with it."  
"And that's your gift?"  
"Yes, it is. If they want me to. I suggest you leave, now. I must explain it further to  
them, and you've seen enough."  
After Urd left (Grumbling about the guilt-trip Allison had given her), Allison turned  
to Keiichi and Belldandy. "Now, I know you're as confused as I would be in your  
situation. What I intend to do, with your permission, is to link you. Wherever each of  
you would go, you'd know where the other was. Should one of you get hurt, the other  
would know. Over time, the link would deepen, and each of you would know what the  
other was feeling. Any questions?"  
Keiichi spoke up. "Would I still be me? And would Bell-chan still be Bell-chan?"  
"Yes. It's not a fusion of personalities. Of course, once the bond grows deep enough,  
you'll be able to communicate by it, but that's something else entirely. As for privacy  
concerns, shielding an emotion from the bond is quite simple, although lying across it is  
literally impossible."  
"Bell-chan?"  
Belldandy appeared unfazed. "If you approve, so do I."  
Turning to Allison, she continued (In Greek), "It sounds wonderful, but I don't want  
to pressure him into anything."  
"Of course, Belldandy," Allison replied (also in Greek), "Actually, I would never do  
this if I thought that either of you harbored any doubts about it. That's why I'm talking  
to you like this."  
Keiichi looked confused. "What was that about?"  
Belldandy looked uncomfortable, so I (as 'Koujiku') interjected. "That was in Greek,  
Keiichi. Belldandy said that she didn't want to influence your decision, and that you had  
to decide on your own. Allison simply agreed with her that you both had to make your  
own choice on the matter."  
"What do you think, Koujiku?"  
"I think that it's your decision. I won't pressure you either way."  
"I understand, Koujiku," Keiichi replied, "but you do have a way with questions.  
What would you ask her?"  
"Well, I'd ask her if her people use this bond amongst themselves."  
"Good question," Keiichi replied. "Allison?"  
"We use a similar one, but it's not common. We vary rarely find true love. You  
have."  
"Well, amongst couples who do love each other, is it common?"  
"About as common as marriage is amongst mortals, and both far more permanent and  
far more rewarding. We have yet to have a single 'divorce' request, although whether  
that's because of the bond or because of the nature of love amongst us is open to  
debate."  
"And what do you mean by 'a similar one'?"  
"I already told you. You're a special case on several counts. Belldandy is a goddess.  
If your training was complete, that wouldn't matter, but as is, I had to work out how to  
avoid certain problems with bonding you. I'm afraid that our name for the main difficulty  
wouldn't mean much to you, but it translates VERY roughly as the "Sensory overload"  
problem. You see, Belldandy's senses are very different from yours. Were I to use the  
full bond, there's a distinct possibility of you going insane from it. That's why I would  
only do it partially, anchoring it in a fashion that would allow it to gradually develop into  
the full bond that we use. This version poses no danger to either of you. If it did, I  
wouldn't suggest it."  
"Okay," Keiichi said, "I've made my decision. Koujiku, could I speak to you in  
private?"  
"Sure, Keiichi," I said.  
After a minute or so, we walked back into the room. I started by explaining to  
Allison.  
"Allison, he's told me what he thinks about it. Belldandy, remember what you said to  
Allison? May I tell him the rest of it?"  
"Yes, Koujiku. That would be a good idea," Belldandy replied.  
"Keiichi, she said that it sounded wonderful, but that she didn't want to pressure  
you."  
"Okay, then you know my decision."  
"Yes. Allison, he thinks almost exactly the same thing. Go ahead."  



	15. Episode 15

*Episode 15*  
  
Upon reflection, most people would find what happened next to be quite unusual.  
They, however, are not familiar with the customs of our people. We hate over-elaborate  
rituals and ceremonies, to the point of a wedding ceremony amongst us typically lasting  
around ten seconds, as time flows in whatever universe the ceremony is being held in.  
Allison simply walked up to the two of them and touched two fingers to each of their  
foreheads. Then, she turned around and sat back down.  
"There," she said.  
"What?" replied Keiichi.  
"Concentrate on the thought of Belldandy, Keiichi. Think about her."  
Keiichi closed his eyes for a moment, obviously doing as she said. A second later, he  
opened them up again, smiling.  
"You're right. I just have to know where to look."  
"Yes, well, I decided to play it safe. As I said, the bond will deepen," Allison replied.  
"Arigatou, Allison-sama," Belldandy said.  
"Belldandy, I believe you've been through this with Sensei. We hate formality.  
Besides, you have every bit as much potential as Keiichi. You're one of us as well."  
Belldandy looked startled for a moment. "But..."  
"Why didn't Sensei tell you earlier? Keiichi is a mortal. He wanted to bring Keiichi up  
to your level before dealing with both of you. I've always told him that he moves too  
slowly, not that I can really blame him."  
Keiichi spoke up, "What do you mean?"  
"Keiichi," Allison said, "There are... consequences if we teach someone too much too  
soon. If we give someone too much power before they develop the maturity to deal with  
it... Well, there's a saying: 'Power corrupts'. It's a bit of an oversimplification, but it is  
true. Unless you are responsible enough to deal with that power, you will abuse it. We  
have to teach that responsibility as well as our abilities. It helps that most of us are good  
people to begin with, but..."  
"I see..."  
"And as of when he first spoke to you, Belldandy both had more power and more  
maturity than you did. That's still true, but not by nearly as much."  
"So why did you tell us?" Keiichi asked, confused.  
"I am not Sensei. We don't always agree on how to proceed."  
"Oh," said Keiichi, not really understanding.  
"Keiichi," Allison said, seeing Keiichi's confusion, "Sensei and I are different people.  
Usually, we agree on how to do things. Sometimes, however, we don't. It's just like with  
you mortals, except that we're a hell of a lot more powerful."  
"Oh," Keiichi said, with a bit of comprehension on his face.  
Allison chuckled.  
"What?" Keiichi said.  
"Inside joke," she replied.  



	16. Episode 16

*Episode 16*  
  
The following Monday, Allison started at Nekomi Tech. As 'Koujiku' was an "old  
friend" of hers, I was asked to give her the standard tour. Well, I WAS asked to.  
Aoshima had followed us, and as soon as the dean asked me, Aoshima interrupted and  
offered to do it himself, as 'Koujiku' was rather new around Nekomi. The dean agreed.  
"Remember what we talked about, Allison," I said.  
"Of, course." Allison replied.  
"Umm..." Aoshima asked, "What language was that?"  
"Well, I spoke in Arabic. Allison was talking in Hebrew." I informed him.  
"Oh." Aoshima muttered, "Just how many languages does this guy understand,  
anyway?"  
"Let's see... Arabic, Greek, Japanese, Chinese, Swahili, English, Spanish, French,  
Latin..."  
Aoshima sweatdropped.  
"Koujiku!" Allison chided, then continued telepathically, I see what you mean. He  
IS a scumbag.  
As Aoshima and Allison walked off, I ran a mental countdown through my head.  
5... 4... 3... 2... 1... A loud "Bang" followed.  
Allison?  
Yes, Sensei?  
He tried something?  
Yes, Sensei.  
Grabbed at your chest and grabbed one of your directional land mines instead?  
Yes, Sensei.  
I believe you owe me dinner.  
Yes, Sensei.  
As the other students in the area ran to investigate the noise, several stopped to stare   
at the man rolling on the floor with laughter. Even more, however, sweatdropped when  
they saw Allison speaking to a thoroughly charred Aoshima.  
"I'm SO sorry.... I really shouldn't have been carrying that Model 195306-b  
Directional Mine. Could you PLEASE forgive me?"  
Aoshima, true to form, missed the sarcasm. I couldn't wait to tell Keiichi. Unfortunately,  
it was over two hours before I got the chance. When I DID tell him, however, his sides nearly  
burst.  
"And *chuckle* how *laugh* did *chortle* Aoshima *snicker* respond *cackle*?"  
"He passed it off as an innocent mistake. So far, he's set off twenty mines."  
Keiichi simlply laughed even harder. "You know," he said, fighting off even more laughter,  
"He hasn't been going after Bell-chan lately."  
"Umm..." I said, looking awkward, "That's because I..."  
"What?"  
"Umm... had a little... umm... talk with him about that."  
"NANI?!? And HOW did you convince him?"  
"Well, I kind of enlisted some help..."  
"What? Who?!?"  
"Well, here... they told me to give you this letter whenever we discussed this..." I said,  
handing him a letter I had in my pocket.  
"Huh?"  
"Read it."  
"'To Mr. Morisato Keiichi... We were delighted when Koujiku-san called and asked us to help  
him with....' You've GOT to be kidding me!"  
"Nope."  
"How did you reach them?"  
"Allison."  
"Oh. When?"  
"Around two weeks from when I got here."  
"And HOW did you get them to agree?"  
"Simple. They were bored."  
"Oh?"  
"Yeah. Read a little closer."  
"... it was the most fun we've had in centuries! Sincerely, Thor, Loki, Tyr, Baldur..." The  
list went on for several more pages. Keiichi sweatdropped.  



	17. Episode 17

*Episode 17*  
  
  
Belldandy was cooking another wonderful-looking dinner for Keiichi and her sisters when I  
'blinked' in behind her.  
"Hello, Belldandy," I greeted.  
"Hello," she responded cheerfully.  
"I'm primarilly here to talk to Skuld. Need help with that?"  
"If you'd like," she said, beaming.  
Dinner that night was extremely good, exceeding even Belldandy's usual standards. I must  
say that the Venusian Wombat Teriyaki turned out better than I expected, as well, and after a  
quick suggestion, we introduced Skuld to ice-cream tempura. Needless to say, *that* was an  
instant hit. I did get a few odd looks from Urd when she saw that I was helping prepare dinner,  
but Keiichi and Skuld took it in stride (Keiichi more so than Skuld). After dinner, however, I  
took Skuld aside.  
"Skuld, we need to talk."  
"Oh? What is it?"  
"Okay, first, please put down that hammer."  
"Okay...."  
"Now, why do you object to Keiichi and Belldandy's relationship?"  
"He's not good enough for her!"  
"I disagree."  
Skuld made a swinging motion with her hands, as if to hit me with a hammer, but suddenly  
realized that she had put it down at my request.  
"Skuld, Skuld, Skuld. Why do you say that he's not good enough for her?"  
"Well, for one thing, he's a mortal."  
"Not anymore, he isn't."  
"What?"  
"He hasn't noticed yet, but his aging has already started to slow, and he shows considerable  
talent in precognition and colocation. Given that you're the Goddess of the Future, I'd think  
that you'd appreciate that."  
"What?!?! That jerk's invading my domain?!? NEO SKULD BOMB... What? Why didn't it explode?"  
"Reallu, Skuld. Throwing a bomb at me won't solve anything, and my powers are more than  
enough to keep one from detonating."  
"Oh," she replied, sheepishly.  
"Skuld, I've neven seen a couple more deeply in love than those two are, and that really  
says a lot."  
"What do you mean?"  
"How old am I?"  
"Oh. That."  
"Exactly."  
"But..."  
"Skuld, Keiichi would never take advantage of Belldandy, even if he could. You really  
should stop trying to get between them. Besides, they're linked."  
"WHAT do you mean?"  
I sighed. "Skuld, look closely at them. Here, I'll lend you my eyesight for a bit."  
"What?"  
"Skuld, look through my eyes. No, not THAT set. The eyes of my projection in the kitchen."  
"Oh... What's THAT?" she said, mentally pointing to a white, smoky cord leading away from   
Belldandy, who was cleaning the dishes.  
"That's what I wanted you to see. Follow it."  
"How?"  
"*Sigh*. Here. I'll show you how," I said, guiding her through the process telepathically.  
"Hmm... from the kitchen... through the hallway... into... KEIICHI'S ROOM?!?"  
"Yes. He's in there, doing homework for one of his classes."  
"And that... thing... leads to him?"  
"Yes. Actually, that's not the only thing I see when I look at them that you don't, but I  
didn't want to overload your senses with extra information."  
"Oh."  
"Skuld, those two were practically *made* for each other. Do you know what they see when  
they look in each other's eyes?"  
"No! I don't believe it!"  
"Skuld, whem Keiichi looks at Belldandy, he sees everything he's ever wanted in a   
girlfriend, and more. He sees a woman that he can trust totally, someone he can look up to and  
respect, someone who he loves from the bottom of his heart. He would never hurt her. I mean, if  
you want proof, just look at what he went through when you and Urd were away in heaven that  
time just after the ninja incident."  
"You mean when he started swollowing Urd's potions?"  
"Yep. That's what I mean. Really, I suspect that he'd rather die than try one of those  
things, but when Belldandy was ill and you two weren't here, he tested them on himself, damn  
the danger and effects."  
"Yeah, but that baka didn't accomplish anything like that."  
"Does it matter? When he realized that nothing he tried would work, he panicked. It's a  
good thing he has his powers, or he wouldn't have been able to reach Urd in Heaven to ask for  
help."  
"What do you mean?"  
"What are the odds of someone dialing Heaven by accident, without divine inspiration?"  
"Roughly 1.6783 times ten to the 9th power."  
"See what I mean?"  
"No."  
"Look, Skuld. We distort chance around us. Without that, he could have been dialing until  
he was eighty years old and still not reached you."  
"What do you mean, distort chance?"  
"Just what I said. Haven't you noticed? Wierd things tend to happen around him, and I'm  
*not* talking about system bugs."  
"Oh," she said, frowning, "But he's still not good enough for my sister!"  
"*Sigh* Skuld, the important thing is that she loves him and he loves her. Hell, he   
practically *worships* her. That, by itself, makes him 'good enough'. Think about it," I said   
as I 'blinked' out.  



End file.
